Russia is increasing the use of banned anti-personnel mines in Ukraine and is even testing new models of these munitions.
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine on the occasion of the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action
The Foreign Ministry noted that after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, the problem of mines and explosive remnants of the war became particularly acute, although Russia has polluted Ukrainian land for the past eight years in a row.
Ukrainian diplomats said that due to the first wave of Russian armed aggression against Ukraine in 2014, about 16,000 square kilometers of Luhansk and Donetsk regions needed to be cleared. Today, according to preliminary estimates, it is about 80 thousand square kilometers of the territory of Ukraine.
“While the entire civilized world is abandoning and banning anti-personnel mines, Russia is increasing their use in Ukraine and even testing new-type of anti-personnel mines such as POM-3 (Medallion) and others.”
The Foreign Ministry stressed that while retreating Russia’s military personnel is massively setting up booby-traps, banned by international law, even on food facilities, private housing, and human corpses.
The Foreign Ministry called on Ukrainians to be as vigilant as possible, remembering the danger of mines, and on the world community to strengthen support for Ukraine to stop the catastrophic increase in the number of victims of mines and explosives in the heart of Europe.
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